How doctors lie and cover their mistakes!

I went to see a doctor about a month ago for a crusty nose and gout, and yet I'm still sick!

I've taken two courses of antibiotics, including Penicillin, and now I'm stuck with a rash.

The latest all began last week when I had a hellishly sore throat (I thought I was going to faint) and sudden high fever, and the usual doctor was on
leave, so I got his colleague.

I thought the guy was very professional, and he probably was, but he looks down my throat and tells me I've got "Staph-throat".

So I get painkillers for the fever and Amoxillin (antibiotic), and he asks me if I'm allergic to Penicillin.
I say I'm not sure, but don't think so.

So now I've got to swallow these huge things that look like suppositories - two twice a day.

I was just done with the course on Wednesday, and ready for my Friday party, but instead I wake up frantically scratching myself all over like a
baboon with lice.
I couldn't go out, as I had red hives all over my body, and sat there all day waiting for my next doctor's appointment that evening.
To crown that I constantly expected the hives to go into full allergic shock, as some sites mentioned could happen.

When I get to the doctor and finally get called, he looks at the red weals on my legs and I can see he's quite surprised.
Now I've been reading up on Amoxillin's side-effects, and it says a rash can develop, and furthermore they never warned me of possible complications
with the anti-gout drug Allipurinol, but luckily I never took it.
This was the doctor who was on leave at the time the Staph-throat was diagnosed.

So later he mentions that I probably never had Staph throat, but probably something called the Epstein-Barr virus.
So my rash was from the virus, but not from the antibiotic they gave me.
That was somewhere between his guesses that I ate something allergy provoking.
In fact, he said this was one of these cases where one can never be sure, and the best thing was just to treat the rash.
One could do tests, but it's not worth the time or money.

But I've been on sites where it says that when the very painful throat of Epstein-Barr is treated with Amoxillin, 95 percent of patients get a
rash! en.wikipedia.org...

So I know this rash has got something to do with their antibiotic, and I know that they know it too.
Some sites mention they can cause reactions up to ten days after the last dose.

Then to crown it all he says I'm getting fat, after I've had gout and been told not to exercise for a month, and just been bedridden with pain and
fever!
Apart from that I subsequently read that Epstein-Barr can make one bloated and swollen.

But what was I expecting to hear - we misdiagnosed you and gave you a rash, and we still don't recommend you actually treat your gout?
We'd also like to refund you?
Nah, let's get real.

Doctors are human and they make mistakes. Unfortunately if they make mistakes people can die.

I don't think doctors intentionally misdiagnose ailments. There are some very good doctors and some that are not so good. You get that in any
profession. Everybody's body reacts differently to medication. I can take the same pill that makes my wife have an upset stomach, but it has no
effect on me.

If you think about it, doctors have a liability cloud hanging over their head every time they have to treat a patient. I truly think they do their
best, but with every job, the more experience you have the more knowledge and skill you gain.

The biggest problem I have with some doctors is when they rush in and rush out of the exam room and don't give you enough time to explain your
ailments. Like they're going to a fire. I understand their on a time schedule, but you paid for the doctors attention and they owe you the time to
listen. Some doctors should have a better bed side manner, if they don't have the patience, they should get out of the profession.

These are young doctors, and I know they have other options but to stay in SA, and they did two years of community service already after their
studies.
I want them here, and consider myself lucky to access to them.

But why lie about something so obvious as this rash?

I mean it's obviously from the antibiotic.

What must I say next time somebody prescribes it?
They could at least warn me that I might be allergic for future use.

What I usually use, when I have a sore throat, or the beginning of swollen tonsils is that I rub Tea Tree Oil on the outside of my throat (permeates
the skin), or I get a breath spray that has it in it...and I do it a couple of times a day. I don't go in for tonsillitis, although I have the
beginning swelling about 4-5 times a year, gone within a day.

I can only say that I've had some painful sore throats in my life, but nothing was like I experienced last week!
I'd say it ranks as one of the top most painful experiences in my life.

I see now that Steph throat is indeed common for Epstein-Barr virus.

The extremely painful sore throat is what first gets people to seek help.

Epstein-Barr is a variant of the human herpes virus.

It's spread by spit, and most people have a dormant form from childhood.
It stays for life.

Any change in the immune system, or other causes can cause it to flare, and it lasts a month or two.

Some people get constant or chronic forms, where the painful stages repeat.

In some cases it's associated with causing cancers, and is widely associated with chronic fatigue syndrome.

So I'm glad the antibiotic took away the extreme pain of the Steph throat, but I still think the high rate of rash with the virus could have been
explained earlier, or could at least have been admitted.

The syndrome of mononucleosis is usually caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (and more rarely CMV).

Here the symptoms in children are described as similar to Steph-throat, but while this requires the antibiotic, in Epstein-Barr or "mono" the clip
says that the antibiotic is the last thing you want, because it WILL cause a rash.
Steroid-type medications are rather indicated.

Well it makes more sense now, because I'm HIV-poz, and although I've had no complications before for 8 years, my CD4 count did fall extremely in 6
months, and maybe that's the kinda stuff coming my way now.

But Epstein-Barr, like other herpes viruses, can affect anyone.

Apparently a confirmation test to differentiate between Steph and mono is not expensive or lengthy in many countries.

The Above Top Secret Web site is a wholly owned social content community of The Above Network, LLC.

This content community relies on user-generated content from our member contributors. The opinions of our members are not those of site ownership who maintains strict editorial agnosticism and simply provides a collaborative venue for free expression.